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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29573385">Ordinary</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/bunnyread/pseuds/bunnyread'>bunnyread</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Kingdom Hearts</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Canon Divergent, M/M, a bit of a character study for mr superior, he/they xemnas, leaisa if u squint, past xehabraig, post kh3, redemption au of sorts, very fluffy im tired of xemnas always being mischaracterized, xemnas pov, xigbar is still luxu but he just decided to be gay instead ya know</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 05:14:10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,346</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29573385</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/bunnyread/pseuds/bunnyread</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Where xemnas comes back and gets two boyfriends who love them very much C:<br/>(inspired by Ordinary by copeland !)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Saïx/Xemnas/Xigbar (Kingdom Hearts)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Ordinary</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A quaint apartment tucked away in Twilight down was awash with the eternal sunset. Lazy light spills across its brick walls and warms those residing within them. Delicate breezes tickle the drapes, taking sweet bird song in with it. The same sunset illuminates the aimless dust clouds that stay suspended unhurriedly in the evening air.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Xemnas found himself watching those dust clouds over the frames of his reading glasses. The Castle That Never Was had always been impeccably clean, so much so it rivalled the scientific facility that it’s founding members hailed from. Xemnas had known that castle for a good 10 years of their life. Before that, his time was briefly spent in the beauty of Radiant Garden under Ansem the Wise. Even further before that… they had not known until meeting their otherselves recently.</p>
<p>They were often entranced by the simplest things in life ever since their re-completion. In his last life, he had never taken time for fleeting joy. He had a clear goal that he strove towards in those days. Now? He sits quietly on a wide leather couch covered in blankets, the only worry on their mind being when he needs to buy more milk from the corner store.</p>
<p>He brought his attention upon his hands as he reminisced. They were ungloved and bare, skin rather dry due to the chillier climate of Twilight Town.</p>
<p>His hands had held a lot of power in his last life.</p>
<p>He could effortlessly summon his ethereal blades with them, silver thorny vines, or intimidating electric-like matter that he had threatened his subordinates with. A reproachful sigh escaped them, interrupting the comfortable conversation that his most trusted companions were having. Though his sigh was quiet, his musings did not go unnoticed by Xigbar- Braig now. The old name brought memories of the labs and intimate moments that warmed Xemnas’s core.</p>
<p>“What’cha thinkin about there, boss?” Braig interrupted Isa’s rambling, playful brown eyes coming to rest on the man he used to answer to. </p>
<p> Isa’s eyes - perhaps the loveliest shade of cerulean Xemnas had ever known - left their target on Braig and came to focus on him. </p>
<p>Xemnas cleared his throat, suddenly feeling vulnerable under the scrutinizing gazes of his partners.</p>
<p>“Pardon me you two, I just…” Their eyes traced over Braig’s streaked hair, down from its usual ponytail and spilling across his back, mirroring the way silk would on a rack.</p>
<p>His train of thought perishes from his mind.</p>
<p>Braig and Isa exchange a glance before the taller of the two spoke up, “Do not feel pressured to share your thoughts si- Xemnas. They are not ours to know.” It’s not that Xemnas wanted to withhold his musings from the others. They’ve all been working hard on communication and honesty after all the secrets of the Organization. </p>
<p>Xemnas’s Organization… One that fell apart. During it all, his right hand was still by his side, even when his conspirings of betrayal went underway. Saix had been so respectful to Xemnas: diligently calling his lord distinguished titles, those which his old superior firmly asserted he did not want to be referred to with the moment they had met again in this new life. </p>
<p>Xemnas gathered himself once again, shuffling awkwardly on his seat. Such unsureness was out of character for their past self but was becoming more frequent as a new person. He had always carried an air of elegance and dominance as the Superior of the In Between, so displaying moments of humanity was always a delightful surprise to his roommates.</p>
<p>At first, he was a heart originating from a brilliant and passionate scientist mixed with the husk of a good-hearted, naive young man. These two pieces whom he had distinguished himself from had fractured his mind when he was a nobody. Terra had fought to regain control of what he lost, and Xehanort upheld his grip so he may fulfil the destiny he set for himself.<br/>
Their constant clash against each other had, in turn, produced Xemnas’s confused persona, unsure of which side of himself to listen to. The stress of identity continued into his new life, confusion finding them once again when they discovered that Terra had been successfully revived and was walking the same worlds as him. It shouldn’t be a shock, considering the Real Organization XIII had Xehanort and Terra’s original form in its number, yet it still felt bizarre. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Stilted silence spread itself like a web as Xemnas pondered and fiddled on the couch. Such silence was common between these three. They never knew whether apologies for their respective schemes were in order or not; Xemnas’s lies, Saix’s murderous plotting, and Xigbar’s secret loyalty to a being none of them were aware of. They had all caused destruction and pain in the Organization; no one more at fault than the other. That being so, the silence in this life held comfort. The past was filled with chaos and misfortune. It was a stark comparison, but one Xemnas was thankful for. </p>
<p>Amidst his rationing, he caught Braig’s knowing glance; The once castle guard had been his confidant in his apprentice days, and Master Xehanorts’ before that. Xigbar had known him, all of him so well,  Xemnas felt he rarely needed to convey his intentions to the sharpshooter - he already knew. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The biting words of the once luna diviner and sharpshooter resumed, filling the space as Xemnas’s eyes fell back upon the book that was balanced precariously in his lap, cheeks growing warm at his thoughts while their strong hands gathered the thick blankets around him.</p>
<p>Xemnas didn't know what it was about these two; Braig’s loud, eccentric and assertive nature on one hand, and then Isa’s introspective, cold and dependable one on the other. There was something about seeing these opposite personalities clash - ensuing much more bickering than Xemnas themself could put up with - that made his newly regained heart skip a beat. </p>
<p>The life that the Superior built for them in the castle was filled with betrayal and insecurity. Every member had revered him, and for a time, Xemnas had thought that was what he wanted. He had not yearned for someone at his level to confide in. But… now that they have it here in Twilight Town, he realized how desperately he needed it. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>         In this new life living in their cozy apartment, he sees his partners squabbling with each other over the coffee table, and it hits him in a way he had never felt before. The tide of emotion that crashed over them at the sight was even greater than that they had experienced when they had fallen in the Keyblade Graveyard. The loneliness that had become an aching fissure in his being waned, replaced by the warmth of the other’s presence.<br/>
His new heart questioned and prodded at this nearly suffocating emotion coursing through it. </p>
<p>An emotion that he would sincerely call…</p>
<p> love. </p>
<p>Warm in the most delightful way yet daunting in how all-consuming it is.</p>
<p>  This mundane life full of normalcy - no backstabbing, no ladder climbing - was what he wanted, and left Xemnas humbled and more than grateful.<br/>
They were re-completed expecting nothing from his previous foes. He had watched, seemingly unbothered, while his subjects destroyed each other for selfish reasons, using the hero’s of the keyblade as their puppets. He had built the Organization to fulfil his Other’s purposes, but now Xehanort had expired. Xemnas’s being re-completed had left him unsure of what to do with himself. The purpose for his very existence had now been resolved, and yet here he still stood. Existing again meant speaking with his former subordinates - a fact that troubled him deeply.</p>
<p> There was clear discomfort between himself and the keyblade bearers. Isa took Xemnas along when he would visit Lea on occasion, the pair bantering warmly while he stood nervously, gawky conversation arising with Roxas and Xion. Though unpleasant, the children are never outright hateful to him despite Xemnas deploying them as tools in their grand plan. The pair’s treatment of their old Superior was far better than he was expecting, and perhaps more than they deserved.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Xemnas found himself back in the present, attempting to decipher what his confidants were debating about with little avail. He absently watched their lips move, and how Braig jabbed fingers in Isa’s general direction. Isa’s features wrinkled irritatedly as he glowered at his opposite. The older man was always teasing, riling up the younger for no reason other than it was fun watching the cool facade crumble away into something much more hot-headed.</p>
<p> Their mind danced in and out of focus, switching between being taken by his lovers and stewing in his memories. Xemnas brought himself back to their surroundings as Braig unleashed a final quip against Isa that rewarded him with the thud of a pillow to his scarred face. Isa’s strength of his nobody surely wasn’t going anywhere, Xemnas silently suspected. Amused, his full lips curved upward in an assured smirk that matched that of his Nobody self.</p>
<p>Closing the heavy-bound book on his lap and pushing their reading glasses further onto his nose, his smirk relaxed into a small and genuine smile.</p>
<p>“I do not believe the furniture has ever done something to warrant your aggression gentlemen-” his normally booming voice quiet and sewed with mirth, “Least of all that pillow. Do try to watch your surroundings, hm?” He theatrically gestured to the room around them, clearly keeping his grandiose body movements from his previous life.</p>
<p>A hearty chortle, heated and crackled like a campfire, bubbled up from Braig. </p>
<p>“Hear that, Isa? Why you doing me like that with that pillow, huh?”</p>
<p>Isa glared begrudgingly between his partners, mischievous malice twinkling in his narrow eyes. </p>
<p>Before they knew it, all the throw cushions of the living room were up in the air, without care for hitting their mark. </p>
<p>Baritone laughter and chuckles fill the homey atmosphere, accompanied by the thumps of fabric on skin. The book from xemnas’s lap long since discarded from the frivolity, the excitement leaving their glasses crooked upon the bridge of their nose.</p>
<p> The once superior was shocked to find his old adjutant smiling; a real, sincere smile unlike the malicious one he knew from the Organization. Meanwhile, Braig’s usual smooth grin enveloped his face, yet his eyes soft and sweet rather than the mocking looks Xigbar had given his fellow members. </p>
<p>Both of them were breathtaking.</p>
<p>Even so, such childish fun between three grown adults with more than enough blood on their hands from the past was… jarring at best, disturbing at worst. Xemnas pressed his thumbs into the soft plush that he held in those guilty hands, his exuberant smirk falling into his usual stern pout. They had trusted their companions so easily even when he was being dishonest with them, and expected that they would trust him just as much. It was quite a foolish notion looking back on it, Xemnas thought to themself. He had once said that the Original Organization XIII had existed to wean out the weak, but it also had entertained the concept of friendship, unlike the Real Organization XIII, ever could. He had never realized how badly he wanted friends by his side until they were gone. </p>
<p>He pondered if his yearning for the comfort of true companions came from Terra, who was perhaps too loyal to his friends, or Xehanort - who had to reluctantly give them up to fulfill his plans. Both… made sense.<br/>
He recalled the keyblade armour that had saved his life, and what a comfort it had been to him when he studied frustratedly under Ansem the Wise. He had sat in the Chamber of Repose, speaking to a friend he didn't quite remember.<br/>
Him finding even more comfort in his seconds than that he had with the lost keyblade wielders was... something he thought he’d never feel. In fact, he was sure he would never feel again in the past. Now, his life was laden with not only feelings of pain, but also heart-wrenching joyous ones.</p>
<p>They continued drifting into the realm of thought, a habit that has become quite bad as of late. Before he could delve too deep, he was once again pulled out when they felt two sets of strong arms lovingly curl around his torso. </p>
<p>Startled, he blinked down to find expressive chocolate eyes peering up to his left and sharp turquoise to his right. </p>
<p>“Come on now, Xem, stay with us” Braig spoke soothingly, something out of the ordinary for his rough exterior. Xemnas felt tingles in their cheek as a damaged and bony hand came up to caress his face. The larger man leaned into the touch, heavy lashes fluttering shut. Meanwhile, Isa tucked his head on Xemnas’s right shoulder, rolling strands of white between his thumb and index finger.<br/>
With his other hand, Isa gently folded Xemnas’s glasses off his face so the three may lay knitted together; Xemnas’s head in Braig’s lap, and Isa’s head resting on Xemnas’s chest. Isa’s tawny hand slid across Xemnas’s ribs and down their arm, apprehensively intertwining rich brown fingers with his own. He muttered something tinged with the sound of a grin. Xemnas couldn’t quite catch it.</p>
<p>The superior quickly pulled the surrounding blanket around the three, staring at Isa’s tired features while the sunset lulled them all to sleep. Once comfortable, Xemnas stole the chance to set his free hand on top of Braig’s thigh. Xemnas sighed contentedly this time as Braig’s warm copper fingers absently stroked the now rounded curve of their ear. </p>
<p>He had heard from his second about the concept of atonement. Xemnas had known what their partner had done for Lea and his friends. Perhaps it was only fair for him to enact the same kind of care onto those he had hurt. This must’ve been destiny’s way of letting Xemnas know that they too are worth the chance at setting things right. Only the lights knew how much it meant to him; and that he wouldn’t pass it up for the world.</p>
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